Citation Nr: 0731594
Decision Date: 10/05/07 Archive Date: 10/16/07
DOCKET NO. 06-17 894 ) DATE
)
On appeal from the
Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Manila, the
Republic of the Philippines
THE ISSUE
Whether new and material evidence has been submitted to
warrant revocation of forfeiture of Department of Veterans
Affairs benefits.
REPRESENTATION
Appellant represented by: The American Legion
WITNESS AT HEARING ON APPEAL
Appellant's daughter
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD
Mark Vichich, Associate Counsel
INTRODUCTION
The veteran served on active duty from December 1941 to June
1942. The appellant is the veteran's widow.
This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals
(Board) on appeal from an August 2005 decision of the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in
Manila, Philippines.
FINDING OF FACT
On September 14, 2007, the Board learned that the appellant
died in July 2007.
CONCLUSION OF LAW
Due to the death of the appellant, the Board has no
jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits of this claim. 38
U.S.C.A. § 7104(a) (West 2002); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302 (2007).
REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION
Unfortunately, the appellant died during the pendency of the
appeal. As a matter of law, appellants' claims do not
survive their deaths. Zevalkink v. Brown, 102 F.3d 1236,
1243-44 (Fed. Cir. 1996); Smith v. Brown, 10 Vet. App. 330,
333-34 (1997); Landicho v. Brown, 7 Vet. App. 42, 47 (1994).
This appeal on the merits has become moot by virtue of the
death of the appellant and must be dismissed for lack of
jurisdiction. See 38 U.S.C.A. § 7104(a) (West 2002); 38
C.F.R. § 20.1302 (2007).
In reaching this determination, the Board intimates no
opinion as to the merits of this appeal or to any derivative
claim brought by a survivor of the veteran. 38 C.F.R.
§ 20.1106 (2007).
ORDER
The appeal is dismissed.
John E. Ormond, Jr.
Veterans Law Judge, Board of Veterans' Appeals
Important Notice: Attached to this decision is a VA Form
that provides information concerning your rights to appeal
our decision. Due to recent changes in the law, some of the
information contained in the attached notice of appellate
rights form is no longer accurate concerning the ability to
pay attorneys and agents to represent you. Some additional
information follows that summarizes the current law. To the
extent that the information contained in the attached VA Form
conflicts with the summary below, please disregard the
information on the VA Form and instead rely upon the
following information:
Do I have to pay an attorney or agent to represent me?
An attorney or agent may charge a fee to represent you
after a notice of disagreement has been filed with
respect to your case, provided that the notice of
disagreement was filed on or after June 20, 2007. See
Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information
Technology Act of 2006, Pub. L. No. 109-461, 120 Stat.
3403 (2006). If the notice of disagreement was filed
before June 20, 2007, an attorney or accredited agent
may charge fees for services, but only after the Board
first issues a final decision in the case, and only if
the agent or attorney is hired within one year of the
Board's decision.
The notice of disagreement limitation does not apply to
fees charged, allowed, or paid for services provided
with respect to proceedings before a court. VA cannot
pay the fees of your attorney or agent, with the
exception of payment of fees out of past-due benefits
awarded to you on the basis of your claim when provided
for in a fee agreement.
VA is in the process of amending its regulations
governing representation of claimants for veterans'
benefits in order to implement the provisions of the new
law. More information concerning the regulation changes
and related matters can be obtained at
http://www1.va.gov/OGC (click on "Accreditation and
Recognition of Service Organizations").
Fee for VA home and small business loan cases: An
attorney or agent may charge you a reasonable fee for
services involving a VA home loan or small business
loan. For more information, read section 5904, title
38, United States Code.
Filing of Fee Agreements: In all cases, a copy of any
fee agreement between you and an attorney or accredited
agent must be sent to the Secretary at the following
address:
Office of the Chief Counsel for Policy (01C3)
Board of Veterans' Appeals
810 Vermont Avenue, NW,
Washington, DC 20420
Facsimile: (202) 565-5643
(When final regulations are published to implement the
requirements of the new law, fee agreements must be
filed with the VA Office of the General Counsel and not
the Board.)
Department of Veterans Affairs